Lesson 5 of 6
Troubleshooting missing or duplicate output
8 min
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"Why did no IDoc go out?" is the most common EDI question on any project, and it has a small number of answers. The trick is to ask the questions in order, from the document outward, and to stop as soon as you find a broken link. Here is the sequence Theo's team uses at Contoso.
- Which framework does the document use?Check Manage Application Object Type Activation · NAST → question 2 · output control → question 5
- Is there an EDI output line on the document?No → determination analysis: procedure, requirement, condition record, partner · Yes → question 3
- What is its status?0 → dispatch time and RSNAST00 · 2 → processing log (often no process code or partner function mismatch) · 1 → question 4
- Does the IDoc exist in WE02?Yes → it is now an IDoc problem: status 03, 30, 02 or 26 · No → check the partner profile and output log again
- Output control: is there an EDI item and what is its status?No item → OPD rules (type, receiver, channel) · in preparation → output relevance · error → item log, then WE02
Determination analysis in message control
Message control documents why an output was or was not determined. In a sales order you open the output screen (Extras > Output > Header > Edit in VA02) and choose the determination analysis; deliveries offer the same through Extras > Delivery Output > Header in VL02N. The analysis lists each output type in the procedure and, for each access, whether a condition record was found, whether a requirement failed, and which partner was used. Typical findings:
- Condition record not found for the access: the record is missing in this system or has the wrong key, for example sales organization 1720 instead of 1710.
- Requirement not fulfilled: the order is incomplete or blocked, so BA00 is deliberately held back. Fix the order, not the configuration.
- Partner not found or not EDI-enabled: the partner function on the record is not in the document, or the partner has no matching WE20 row, so the EDI output is not proposed.
- Output type not in the procedure for this document type: a new sales document type was created without the right output determination procedure.
Duplicate output
The opposite problem is just as expensive: Great Lakes' system may reject a second 855 or, worse, treat a second 810 as a new invoice. Duplicates usually come from one of these:
| Cause | Framework | How to spot it | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Two condition records match in different accesses and the access sequence does not stop at the first | NAST | Two BA00 lines with different partners or keys | Set the exclusive indicator on the access, or remove the redundant record |
| Change output: the order changed after confirmation and the output type allows multiple issuing | NAST | Second BA00 line created on the change date | Agree with the partner whether changed 855s are wanted; adjust the requirement or the output type |
| Manual repeat by a user after an outage | Both | Output line or item created by a named user | Train the team: check the IDoc and the partner first, repeat once |
| Several channel or receiver rows match without an exclusive stop | Output control | Extra output items for the same receiver | Order rows specific to general and mark the intended stop as exclusive |
| Middleware resend after a timeout | Neither | One IDoc in SAP, two interchanges at the partner | Check PO's message monitor and the 997 control numbers |
Common causes of duplicate EDI output and how to tell them apart.
Output control specifics
With output control, the questions are the same but the places differ. If no EDI item exists, the rules did not return it: check the output type step (is the billing type covered?), the receiver step (is role RE in the document?) and the channel step (is EDI returned for this customer, and does an earlier exclusive row stop evaluation too soon?). If the item exists but stays in preparation, the output relevance step said no. If the item shows an error, its log usually names the partner profile or IDoc problem, which you then follow in WE02.
What would you do?
Great Lakes reports a second 855 for purchase order GLF-PO-55120, sent two days after the first. Sales order 1000457 shows two BA00 lines; the second was created by the system on the day Maria changed the delivery date. What is the right response?
- Diagnose in order: framework, output line or item, output status, IDoc status.
- Determination analysis shows missing records, failed requirements, partner problems and missing output types.
- Duplicates come from overlapping records, change output, manual repeats, non-exclusive OPD rows or middleware resends.
- Count outputs, IDocs and interchanges to find where a duplicate was created.
Check your understanding · not graded
Lesson check
1. A BA00 output exists with status 0 and dispatch time 1. What is the most likely reason no IDoc exists yet?
2. In a sales order, what does determination analysis show?
3. Great Lakes receives two 810s for one invoice, but SAP shows one output item and one IDoc. Where was the duplicate most likely created?